Aston Villa have enjoyed a thrilling time under Unai Emery, who has transformed the club since his arrival in the winter of 2022.
The Spaniard has guided the Midlands side from a relegation-threatened state to a squad challenging in Europe in less than a year since taking charge, providing a contrast to the lack of development under Steven Gerrard.
An impressive start to life under the former Arsenal boss was added to in his first summer transfer window in charge of the Villans, in which he broke the club's transfer record fee to bring in some outstanding talent.
Capturing Moussa Diaby for £51.9m was an electrifying piece of business by Emery and Monchi, with the Frenchman having already netted twice in the Premier League.
Clement Lenglet, Nicolo Zaniolo, Youri Tielemans and Pau Torres joined Diaby in making the move to Villa Park, signing off from a positive summer of business in the Midlands.
Despite claiming the signatures of such talents, the club were linked to a host of quality stars throughout the window, as expected considering Emery’s pull and the involvement in Europe in 2023/24.
One name in particular alerted those associated with the club to the prospect of pulling off a sensational feat, with an English superstar in Jadon Sancho linked with Villa Park on numerous occasions.
Did Aston Villa nearly sign Jadon Sancho?
In June, a report from Football Transfers named Aston Villa as a club potentially eyeing the availability of Manchester United outsider Jadon Sancho.
The links came with a suggested price tag of £60m for the winger, who had ‘keen’ interest from the Villans at the time.
Such rumours resurfaced just prior to the final week of the market, as CaughtOffside suggested that the Midlands side were considering a late move for the forward, with his future at Old Trafford in doubt.
With attacking players Diaby and Zaniolo added to the mix, nothing concrete was reported following the suggestions that the 23-year-old was of interest.
What is Jadon Sancho’s market value?
A reported price tag of £60m would be a fair estimation to indicate a viable transfer for United to sanction.
As per CIES Football Observatory, the Englishman is currently valued at €60m (£51m), a drop-down in his price that the Red Devils signed him for back in 2021.
The former Manchester City academy star was purchased from Borussia Dortmund to make a dramatic return to the northwest for £73m, penning a contract lasting five years at Old Trafford.
When weighing up the three years, plus an additional year, remaining on his current deal, an asking fee of £60m is understandable, and a deal that Villa in hindsight could have benefitted from exploring deeper.
What is Jadon Sancho doing now?
Making the move back to England from Dortmund was a bold, but expected move for the Londoner, who had exceeded expectations during his short time in Germany.
There was speculation whether the winger would have to take the time to adapt his game to the demands of the Premier League, considering that he had learned the art of football through the traits of the English game.
Footballing culture altogether is contrasting in Germany as it is to England, which has arguably been one of the faults to Sancho’s move back to Manchester, with suffocating pressure placed on his back by those watching on.
A £73m price tag and the form displayed in Dortmund made the expectations of the 23-year-old of a gargantuan magnitude, leaving him no option but to deliver at such a level to prove his worth back in his home country.
Things have not gone to plan for the 23-capped England international, making 58 appearances in the league for the Red Devils, scoring just nine goals in the process.
It was evident that the Londoner had fallen out of favour with Erik ten Hag, with tensions reaching an all-time high last weekend as he wasn’t selected to even feature in the squad for United’s visit to Arsenal.
The Dutchman went public with his decision to not select the 23-year-old, saying that based on his “performances in training”, he was not in contention to travel to north London for the highly-anticipated fixture.
After the Red Devils’ dramatic 3-1 loss to the Gunners, Sancho came out and spoke in retaliation to the manager’s public claims of his lack of performance saying he’d been a “scapegoat for a long time”, and branded Ten Hag’s comments as “untrue”.
At just 23-years-old, it’s as easy to sympathise with the public slander from his manager as it is to question his decision to give a public response.
Now that recent dramas have unfolded between player, manager and club, a potential move away from Old Trafford could have been a fundamental career change for the winger.
What could Jadon Sancho have offered to Villa?
A story of what could have been is the narrative regarding Sancho, but Villa posed as being the perfect club to have signed for.
Despite scoring just nine goals during his league career at United, the talent the winger has seen him previously described as a “phenomenon” by talent scout Jacek Kulig.
That was certainly seen in Germany where in 104 Bundesliga appearances in yellow, Sancho contributed to a mammoth 89 goals, scoring 38 and assisting 51 from the flank.
The 2019/20 season signified an individual season high for the dynamic star, as he recorded 17 assists and 17 goals in the league, contributing to 34 goals in 32 games, via Transfermarkt.
Jadon Sancho Bundesliga record
12
1
4
34
12
18
32
17
17
26
8
12
A dip in form following a change in scenery at such a young age is somewhat admissible, considering the levels the 23-year-old is capable of hitting.
Emery could have utilised Sancho’s talent to get him to past heights, making him the star of the show and nurturing his talent away from the high expectation and high criticism that comes with representing United.
It wouldn’t be the first time that the Spaniard has guided a widely renowned up-and-coming English talent, with the former Gunners boss being responsible for unearthing Bukayo Saka.
Despite securing a reunion with former player Pau Torres during the window, a debate to be reunited with Saka at Villa is not on the cards by any means, however, the 51-year-old could have had a replica of the Arsenal sensation in Sancho.
While the Hale End graduate’s career has rocketed and Sancho’s has stalled, the two are still comparable in their approach to play, as highlighted by statistics.
Over the past year, FBref identified Sancho as being comparable to Saka based on his averages per 90, suggesting just the calibre of player Emery could have guided at Villa Park.
As per FBref, the margins were not as extensive as the two wingers’ goal contributions, with the United dud averaging 5.08 progressive carries and 1.95 successful take-ons per 90 over the past year.
Saka mirrored the former Bundesliga star’s rate of 1.95 successful take-ons per 90, and just tipped the 23-year-old to average 5.27 progressive carries per 90, communicating the similarities to their strengths as wide forwards.
When revising the demographic of player that Emery wanted this summer, as highlighted through recruiting Diaby, Sancho would have fitted the mould perfectly in the squad.
Hindsight is a great thing, and looking back it’s questionable that the Londoner would have taken a move to the Midlands to escape the pending conflict between himself and Ten Hag.
Despite the strong recruitment this summer, Emery missed a trick by failing to capture Sancho, who could’ve been elevated under the Spaniard and given the four-time Europa League winner his next Saka-like presence on the flanks.